Theatre students to portray Romeo and Juliet with Charlotte Symphony

Theatre students Sammy Hajmahmoud and Jennifer Huddleston will be featured performers in the Charlotte Symphony’s “KnightSounds” concerts on Friday and Saturday, May 20-21.

In connection with the international celebration of the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, the upcoming programs will present Romeo and Juliet in a montage of orchestral pieces, opera arias, a ballet pas de deux and brief scenes from Shakespeare’s tragedy. Charlotte Symphony Music Director Christopher Warren-Green will conduct.

Hajmahmoud, a junior, and Huddleston, a senior, will perform the title roles in the play excerpts, directed by Robinson Distinguished Professor of Shakespeare Andrew Hartley, who has served as the program’s dramaturg.

The two theatre majors have participated in the UNC Charlotte Department of Theatre/Shakespeare in Action “36 in 6 Project,” performing in productions such as “Hamlet,” “The Shrew Project” (“The Taming of the Shrew”) and “Romeo.Juliet.”

The “36 in 6 Project,” in which 36 Shakespeare works were addressed during a six-year period, culminated on April 23 with “As We Like It,” a celebration and performance in Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts.

The Charlotte Symphony “Romeo and Juliet” concerts, presented in partnership with Charlotte Ballet, are the final performances of the 2015-16 KnightSounds series and will take place in the Knight Theater at Levine Center for the Arts at 7:30 p.m., May 20 and 21. The performances will be broadcast live on a large screen in the Levine Center for the Arts plaza. Visit charlottesymphony.org for details and tickets.